Inclusion of on-site renewables in design-stage building life cycle assessments

This paper investigates the inclusion of renewables in building life cycle assessments. On-site renewable electricity generation is increasingly common in the built environment, but existing guidance for the inclusion of these renewable systems in design-stage life cycle assessment is limited. The life cycle assessment of a building with 42.8 kWpeak solar photovoltaic array is used as a case study to investigate the effect of different assumptions on the assessment outcome. The case study results are then used to suggest good practice. The paper also highlights where further research is required to provide reliable design-stage assessments in future

The Gini coefficient and the case of negative values

When calculating the Gini coefficient for distributions which include negative values, the Gini coefficient can be greater than one, which does not make evident its interpretation. In order to avoid this awkward result, common practice is either replacing the negative values with zeros, or simply dropping out units with negative values. We show how these practices can neglect significant variability shares and make comparisons unreliable. The literature also presents some corrections or normalizations which restrict the modified Gini coefficient into the range [0-1]: unluckily these solutions are not free of deficiencies. When negative values are included, the Gini coefficient is no longer a concentration index, and it has to be interpreted just as relative measure of variability, taking account of its maximum inside each particular situation. Our findings and suggestions are illustrated by an empirical analysis, based on the Survey of Household Income and Wealth, released by Banca d'Italia

Electrochemical oxidation of oxalic acid in the presence of halides at boron doped diamond electrode

Aim of this work is to discuss the electrochemical oxidation of oxalic acid (OA), analyzing the influence of NaCl and NaBr. Experiments were carried out at boron-doped diamond (BDD) electrodes, in alkaline media. BDD electrodes have a poor superficial adsorptivity so their great stability toward oxidation allows the reaction to take place with reactants and intermediates in a non-adsorbed state. The process is significantly accelerated by the presence of a halogen salt in solution; interestingly, the mediated process does not depend on applied current density. Based on the results, bromide was selected as a suitable mediator during OA oxidation at BDD. Br- primarily acts in the volume of the solution, with the formation of strong oxidants; while Cl- action has shown lower improvements in the OA oxidation rate at BDD respect to the results reported using Pt electrode. Finally, the parameters of removal efficiency and energy consumption for the electrochemical incineration of OA were calculated. O objetivo deste trabalho é discutir a oxidação eletroquímica do ácido oxálico (AO), analisando a influência do NaCl e NaBr. Experimentos foram realizados em eletrodos de diamante dopados com boro (DDB), em meio alcalino. Eletrodos DDB têm uma baixa adsortividade superficial, portanto sua grande estabilidade frente à oxidação permite que a reação ocorra com reagentes e intermediários não adsorvidos. O processo é significativamente acelerado pela presença de sal de halogênio na solução; curiosamente, o processo mediado não depende da densidade de corrente aplicada. Com base nos resultados, o brometo foi selecionado como um mediador apropriado durante a oxidação de AO em DDB. Br- age primeiramente no volume da solução, com a formação de oxidantes fortes, enquanto a ação do Cl- mostrou melhoras mais baixas na oxidação do AO em BDD, com relação aos resultados relatados usando eletrodo de Pt. Finalmente, os parâmetros de eficiência de remoção e consumo de energia para a incineração eletroquímica de AO foram calculados

Sistemi automatici di registrazione: nuove metodologie bioacustiche applicate a indagini ornitologiche in alcuni siti della Rete Natura 2000 del Veneto. Risultati e prospettive.

Il lavoro illustra i risultati di un progetto di monitoraggio acustico delle specie ornitologiche presenti in alcuni siti della Rete Natura 2000 del Veneto. Si descrive la metodologia impiegata, basata su registratori automatici programmabili e sull'analisi spettrografica delle registrazioni risultanti. Il progetto e' stato realizzato in collaborazione con il Corpo Forestale dello Stato

Prevalence of Cardiovascular Disease in Patients With Potentially Curable Malignancies: A National Registry Dataset Analysis

Background: Although a common challenge for patients and clinicians, there is little population-level evidence on the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in individuals diagnosed with potentially curable cancer. Objectives: We investigated CVD rates in patients with common potentially curable malignancies and evaluated the associations between patient and disease characteristics and CVD prevalence. Methods: The study included cancer registry patients diagnosed in England with stage I to III breast cancer, stage I to III colon or rectal cancer, stage I to III prostate cancer, stage I to IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer, stage I to IV diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and stage I to IV Hodgkin lymphoma from 2013 to 2018. Linked hospital records and national CVD databases were used to identify CVD. The rates of CVD were investigated according to tumor type, and associations between patient and disease characteristics and CVD prevalence were determined. Results: Among the 634,240 patients included, 102,834 (16.2%) had prior CVD. Men, older patients, and those living in deprived areas had higher CVD rates. Prevalence was highest for non-small-cell lung cancer (36.1%) and lowest for breast cancer (7.7%). After adjustment for age, sex, the income domain of the Index of Multiple Deprivation, and Charlson comorbidity index, CVD remained higher in other tumor types compared to breast cancer patients. Conclusions: There is a significant overlap between cancer and CVD burden. It is essential to consider CVD when evaluating national and international treatment patterns and cancer outcomes

Prevalence of Cardiovascular Disease in Patients With Potentially Curable Malignancies: A National Registry Dataset Analysis.

BACKGROUND: Although a common challenge for patients and clinicians, there is little population-level evidence on the prevalence of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in individuals diagnosed with potentially curable cancer. OBJECTIVES: We investigated CVD rates in patients with common potentially curable malignancies and evaluated the associations between patient and disease characteristics and CVD prevalence. METHODS: The study included cancer registry patients diagnosed in England with stage I to III breast cancer, stage I to III colon or rectal cancer, stage I to III prostate cancer, stage I to IIIA non-small-cell lung cancer, stage I to IV diffuse large B-cell lymphoma, and stage I to IV Hodgkin lymphoma from 2013 to 2018. Linked hospital records and national CVD databases were used to identify CVD. The rates of CVD were investigated according to tumor type, and associations between patient and disease characteristics and CVD prevalence were determined. RESULTS: Among the 634,240 patients included, 102,834 (16.2%) had prior CVD. Men, older patients, and those living in deprived areas had higher CVD rates. Prevalence was highest for non-small-cell lung cancer (36.1%) and lowest for breast cancer (7.7%). After adjustment for age, sex, the income domain of the Index of Multiple Deprivation, and Charlson comorbidity index, CVD remained higher in other tumor types compared to breast cancer patients. CONCLUSIONS: There is a significant overlap between cancer and CVD burden. It is essential to consider CVD when evaluating national and international treatment patterns and cancer outcomes

Smooth kinematic and metallicity gradients reveal that the Milky Way's nuclear star cluster and disc might be part of the same structure

Context. The innermost regions of most galaxies are characterised by the presence of extremely dense nuclear star clusters. Nevertheless, these clusters are not the only stellar component present in galactic nuclei, where larger stellar structures known as nuclear stellar discs, have also been found. Understanding the relation between nuclear star clusters and nuclear stellar discs is challenging due to the large distance towards other galaxies which limits their analysis to integrated light. The Milky Way’s centre, at only ~8 kpc, hosts a nuclear star cluster and a nuclear stellar disc, constituting a unique template to understand their relation and formation scenario. Aims. We aim to study the kinematics and stellar metallicity of stars from the Milky Way’s nuclear star cluster and disc to shed light on the relation between these two Galactic centre components. Methods. We used publicly available photometric, proper motions, and spectroscopic catalogues to analyse a region of ~2.8′ × 4.9′ centred on the Milky Way’s nuclear star cluster. We built colour magnitude diagrams, and applied colour cuts to analyse the kinematic and metallicity distributions of Milky Way’s nuclear star cluster and disc stars with different extinction, along the line of sight. Results. We detect kinematic and metallicity gradients for the analysed stars along the line of sight towards the Milky Way’s nuclear star cluster, suggesting a smooth transition between the nuclear stellar disc and cluster.We also find a bi-modal metallicity distribution for all the analysed colour bins, which is compatible with previous work on the bulk population of the nuclear stellar disc and cluster. Our results suggest that these two Galactic centre components might be part of the same structure with the Milky Way’s nuclear stellar disc being the grown edge of the nuclear star cluster